A COUNCIL was under fire last night over plans to axe three voluntary organisation jobs in one of the most deprived parts of Wales.

More than 70 angry campaigners packed Rhyl Town Hall on Thursday to oppose the cuts by Denbighshire County Council.

Vale of Clwyd AM Ann Jones slammed the independent Tory-led cabinet and claimed they would “decimate” the Denbighshire Community Agency.

But the authority, which blames a poor settlement from the Welsh Assembly for the cuts, said it was “making every effort” to redeploy staff.

Opponents have now set up a petition to overthrow the move that will see two full-time and one part-time positions scrapped in a bid to save cash.

Last night Mrs Jones told the Post community projects will “almost certainly fold”.

She said the council will “decimate” the agency by making the cuts.

“This will have a disastrous effect on the remaining employees whose workload will dramatically increase.

“The council have already wasted obscene amounts of money on outside consultants – it doesn’t make economic sense to lose these three valuable posts,” she said.

Mrs Jones, who called for the public meeting, said people displayed “massive praise” for the work of the agency that supports community development and regeneration through anti-poverty initiatives.

In a joint statement with North Wales AM Mark Isherwood, she expressed concerns for the cabinet’s “lack of transparency”, claiming many politicians were not properly consulted.

The pair have written again to the chief executive urging him to reverse the decision.

A Denbighshire council spokesman said: “Denbighshire County Council is assuring residents that the Denbighshire Community Agency is not closing and has expressed its continued commitment to regeneration and community development work in the county.”

Council leader Hugh Evans said: “The council is proud of its achievements and will continue to use its resources to the best of its abilities for the benefit of the people of Denbighshire.”